Las Vegas ex-pastor, teacher pleads guilty in child sex case

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A church pastor and former elementary school teacher from Las Vegas has pleaded guilty to a child sex crime in a plea agreement that avoids trial and is expected to get him two to 20 years in state prison when he is sentenced Aug. 15.

Reynaldo Cruz Crespin, 59, pleaded guilty Monday in Clark County District Court to attempted lewdness with a child under 14, court records show. Several other charges were dismissed.

Crespin also may be sentenced to lifetime supervision as a sex offender, under terms of his plea deal.

Crespin was arrested in February in Albuquerque, New Mexico, more than a week after he was named in a warrant in Las Vegas on multiple charges including sexual assault involving children under ages 16 and 14.

KLAS-TV in Las Vegas reported that Crespin taught second grade from 2016 until this year and was a pastor at New Horizon Christian Church in northeast Las Vegas. The television station said none of the charges related to his students.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Crespin and his wife, Marivic Crespin, founded the church in 2002. She filed a lawsuit in February seeking custody of their children.

A telephone call to the church on Wednesday reached a disconnected number.